ZAGREB,  17 Dec (Hina) - An atlas of biodiversity, the first Croatian national open data system on biodiversity, worth € 330,000 , and maps on Croatia's good areas for development of solar and wind power plants,  worth €298,000, were launched as digital platforms.

Attending the inaugural ceremony, held in the state-run Croatian water management company's headquarters in Zagreb, Green Transition Minister Marija Vučković said that these two digital platforms play an important role in preserving the country's national resources.

"This is the first time a functional database for storing and sharing data on species, especially wild species, has been created in this way," the minister said commenting on the Atlas.

"We expect this Atlas to have more than 5,000 regular users and over five million observations in the next five years. So far, data on 25,000 species has been entered, with more than 1.25 million observations," said Vučković.

Regarding the "Maps of the Sensitivity of Croatia's Areas to the Development of Solar and Wind Power Plants," she said this is part of Croatia's integration into the global biodiversity information system in 2022 and will contribute to accelerating assessments and nature conservation in the future.

These maps serve as a technical basis for fast decision-making regarding the installation of future solar and wind power plants, Vučković concluded.

The minister particularly thanked the partners – The Nature Conservancy organisation for their help in the implementation of the project and their work within the global biodiversity information system, as well as the Hrvoje Požar Energy Institute with which the Ministry specifically collaborated in developing the necessary and acceptable methodology.

Kasandra-Zorica Dropuljić of the Nature Conservancy says that these tools are not just digital innovations, but also "catalysts for change."

The director of  Croatia's Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund, Luka Balen, said that the Fund has approved around €250 million so far for the implementation of various nature protection projects, both from national and European funds, within the previous Competitiveness and Cohesionoperational programme.